Nothing, I know, to most SummitPosters, but my first of the 35 high peaks.

Burroughs Range Trail on the west side is a nice gentle carriage road. Curtis Ormsbee has its steep moments, and today it was definitely not negotiable without some sort of traction aid; a couple of scrambles were iced over. My daughter went down to the spring on the east side and reported that coming back up was hairy (for her) - the ladders were fine, but some of the other scrambles were icier and slabbier than she felt safe with.

Snowshoes definitely not needed, deepest snow was only boot-deep.

Only a few glimpses of the views - visibility was obscured by snow and blowing snow. The Neversink was high enough to make the steppingstones awkward, and my daughter wound up with a bootful of water on the way out.

I'm a very slow hiker on ice, start 0945 or so and finish about 1615. Passed by 3-4 other parties, including a group of about 20 Chinese tourists (who were surprisingly skilled and well-equipped.)

Are there style points for making my start on the 35 be the highest one, in winter?

Climbed with two NYCers who had never hiked a mountain. This was a great way to see if it is worth the effort. Despite the black flies, wet rocks, hot and humid conditions, I thoroughly enjoyed the outing. However, I am not sure they will ever hike a mountain again.

4 times - 1987, 1991, 1997, and 2001. The last time was particularly memorable, going up the Fisherman's Path along the Neversink with 3 others and introducing them to the Catskills for the first time, haha!

Headed up Slide from the West after visiting Panther in the morning. The warm weather and rain the previous days had melted most of the snow from the storm the week before. Trail was slushy but not too bad, although there were a few sections covered in ice that made me happy to have brought my microspikes along. Decent views but very few people. Great day to be in the Catskills.

A warm day in March way back in 1991. It was more of a slush climb than snow climb and temperatures were comfortably in the high fifties. Used the western approach and walking through the slush added some challenge. Excellent views from the summit which had quite a few people. See link for more information on hiking the Catskills or in other locations in the United States: http://hubpages.com/hub/Four-Great-Hikes-in-the-Catkills

We did the loop from the Wittenberg/Cornell side. Lots of great scrambles made it very enjoyable. No water to be found across the top of Wittenberg and Cornell. There was finally a little spring just off the trail a few hundred feet before the summit. Once over the summit of Slide it was basically a walk in the woods back to the trailhead.

Climbed from the Slide Mtn. parking lot on Rt. 47 via the Phoenicia-East and Wittenberg-Slide-Cornell Trails with snowshoes. Had a fun time with my wife as we climbed up but didn't spend much time on top.

The path was challenging without snowshoes, yet each step yielded the rewards of a breathtaking winter landscape frozen in time. Fleeting sunshine, tunnels of snowbound evergreens, ice-clad creeks and the delicate imprints of rabbits' feet embued the silent landscape with life and wonder.